Twaddle Spotting - spotting b*llsh*t in books

Recommended Posts

Guest wolverine

Guest wolverine

Any book where someone claims to be a member of an ancient hereditary tradition which they can't write about, but will gladly sell you all their secrets via mail order if you send them a cheque for £10/100/1000. ;)

Guest Rusalka

Witches do not drink or use blood in any way from animals, themselves, or any person (alive or dead). Oh, I think you'll find that some DO, Silver.

The Spiritual Laws represent a code of ethics or morals giving the Crafter a guideline for spiritual living, whether you choose to practice as a Solitary (a Witch alone) or within a group structure. These Spiritual Laws apply to all magickal people, and most magickal individuals incorporate these laws into their group workings and their solitary practices. Really? Do they? Did she take a poll??

Moonhunter 3686

Moonhunter 3686

The Spiritual Laws represent a code of ethics or morals giving the Crafter a guideline for spiritual living, whether you choose to practice as a Solitary (a Witch alone) or within a group structure. These Spiritual Laws apply to all magickal people, and most magickal individuals incorporate these laws into their group workings and their solitary practices. Really? Do they? Did she take a poll??

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest Minty

Guest Minty

Sadly there seems to be no geographical barrier that prevents against writing a complete pile of shite. A quick Amazon search will bring up a whole farmyard of manure, all lurking under the phrase "witchcraft" or "Wicca", alot of the books are novels that involve the characters from the tv show "Charmed". :P

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest Minty

Guest Minty

C'mon, that's not fair to the Moon, nothing deserves that! How about sending them on a suicide mission to investigate the Sun?

"Roll up, Roll up, Roll up, to all crap writers. A trip that is guaranteed to 'fire' your imagination. Discover the secret of the 'hot' novel. Sign up for a writers course that you'll never forget. The "Fun in the Sun, Once in a Lifetime (well yours) Writers Cruise"

(one way trip, no returns!)"

I know quite a few authors who I'd willingly 'sign up'!!!

BB, Minty. xx

Edited April 28, 2007 by araminta

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest wolverine

Guest wolverine

C'mon, that's not fair to the Moon, nothing deserves that! How about sending them on a suicide mission to investigate the Sun?

"Roll up, Roll up, Roll up, to all crap writers. A trip that is guaranteed to 'fire' your imagination. Discover the secret of the 'hot' novel. Sign up for a writers course that you'll never forget. The "Fun in the Sun, Once in a Lifetime (well yours) Writers Cruise"

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest tawnydoe

Guest tawnydoe

Feel free to throw rotten vegetables at me for saying this but I find a line in Arin Murphy-Hiscock's book Solitary Wicca for life just a teensy bit anoying - "you cannont pick and choose to follow aspects of Wicca and still call yourself a Wiccan." Apologies to anyone who likes Murphy-Hiscocks work, and yes I know the book is aimed at those who have been practicing for a while, but what about us beginners? If I were to follow this trail of thought I would have no right to call myself a Wiccan because I am still learning - I chose to follow only the aspects that I understand and believe in, there will be more aspects the more I learn. I could just jump in and follow everything that I read and practice every wiccan ritual I hear about but that would mean following things I don't believe and saying and doing things that don't feel right. So unless anyone knows where i can get a good dose of blind faith, more than a pinch of stupidity, and something to give me the energy to get my head around every aspect of wicca within 24 hrs, I'll stick to muddling along in my own way thanks :) Speak to you all soon tawnydoe

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

fizzyclare1 369

fizzyclare1 369

Feel free to throw rotten vegetables at me for saying this but I find a line in Arin Murphy-Hiscock's book Solitary Wicca for life just a teensy bit anoying - "you cannont pick and choose to follow aspects of Wicca and still call yourself a Wiccan." Apologies to anyone who likes Murphy-Hiscocks work, and yes I know the book is aimed at those who have been practicing for a while, but what about us beginners? If I were to follow this trail of thought I would have no right to call myself a Wiccan because I am still learning - I chose to follow only the aspects that I understand and believe in, there will be more aspects the more I learn. I could just jump in and follow everything that I read and practice every wiccan ritual I hear about but that would mean following things I don't believe and saying and doing things that don't feel right. So unless anyone knows where i can get a good dose of blind faith, more than a pinch of stupidity, and something to give me the energy to get my head around every aspect of wicca within 24 hrs, I'll stick to muddling along in my own way thanks :( Speak to you all soon tawnydoe

173467[/snapback]

a person who thinks along similar lines as me - blind faith sucks - can't beat curiousity tempered with good ole common sense.

personally, I don't follow any path except my own - if that fits with a particular religion then fine but I don't like being pigeon holed at all - labelling yourself is a pretty naff way to exist if you ask me - too narrow and no room for growth unless its within certain confines of a faith. no one has the right answer -which I guess is why there is so much variation in thought about faith/religion/belief (and its probably why theres a lot of quackery too). one mans meat is a nother man's twaddle, I guess!

fizzy

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest tawnydoe

Guest tawnydoe

Well I call myself Wiccan because I see what I believe and do as a form of religious practice. By this I mean that the belief in and veneration of the God + Goddess and rituals tied to this are the basis of what I do, magic and plant/herbal lore is something which comes as an 'as well as'. Magic is something that is still very new to me and somthing that I am building up my understanding of as I go along. I am still coming from the background of a Christian upbringing where labeling myself as C of E, or Catholic, or Methodist or whatever was the norm and I haven't got out of that habit yet. Also I call myself Wiccan rather than Witch because I feel that I am working along similar lines to ideas that began in the mid twentieth century (not that I specifically follow any one set idea) not a centuries old 'old religion' idea. Until recently I used to get really hung up about if I was doing it 'right' then I realised -hey bugger them, do whats right for me - and to be honest I feel closer to the deities I worship now than I ever did trying to follow a partiular author or freting about if I lit the wrong coloured candle on the wrong day would I annoy the God/Goddess and have bad things happen. See ya Tawnydoe

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest GraveyardHaunter

Guest GraveyardHaunter

Not just that you can only do certain spells when certain moons are rising in their waxing phase in the month of august on a thursday when the sun is eclipsing (which was mentioned earlier on in the thread) but when you wait for 17 years for this event to happen, you have done everything according to the book and then in the list of correspondences in the appendix it suddenly tells you that for spells on thursday you have to wear something lilac, handed down from your paternal grandmothers neighbour!!!!! ;)

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest nacht

Guest nacht

Whilst away last week I found myself looking through Cunningham's "Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs" - sodding hell that book was bad - The illustrations didn't match the plants - which pretty much negates the whole point of the book!

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest Tas Mania

Guest Tas Mania

Whilst away last week I found myself looking through Cunningham's "Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs" - sodding hell that book was bad - The illustrations didn't match the plants - which pretty much negates the whole point of the book!

Oh, it's published by Lleweylln too.

182914[/snapback]

SO glad another person thinks he's shite too! :o_beer:

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Guest nacht

Guest nacht

Whilst away last week I found myself looking through Cunningham's "Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs" - sodding hell that book was bad - The illustrations didn't match the plants - which pretty much negates the whole point of the book!

Oh, it's published by Lleweylln too.

182914[/snapback]

SO glad another person thinks he's shite too! :o_beer:

182918[/snapback]

I just find it really odd how someone could put a book like that out there into the world - I dread to think what the rest of his stuff is like.